Façade
by AnimeWolfGirl16
Summary: Even if her current appearance was a façade, she would still become this person to help him, to give him time to heal. Eventually though, she hoped that he would see her for who she really was and not just as the shadow of the person he had loved. (One-shot) (SlaineXLemrina) (hints of one-sided SlaineXAsseylum) (Takes place during 2nd Cour)


**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, places, etc. in Aldnoah Zero. It all belongs to their respectful owners.**

* * *

Façade

The day had been another tiring one, pretending to be someone she wasn't took its toll on her body after a long time. It was all needed though. The populace had to believe that Princess Asseylum Vers Allusia was in support of the war on Earth.

 _Even if I'm not her…_

To treat her, Slaine had allowed her to go in the zero gravity area once more. The feeling of walking on her own two feet, of not needing the metal wheelchair to move, allowed her a sense of freedom.

 _Here, I can walk on my own, make my own destiny…_

Others had always controlled her; what she did, where she went, the very simple matters of her everyday life. Even now, she was being controlled, being forced to use her gift of Aldnoah.

 _I'm just a pawn in their game…_

The smile briefly left her face before it was back as she took another leap into the air. The feeling of weightlessness always helped to improve her mood immensely. She let out a laugh, glancing back at her to see pale blonde hair. Slaine had insisted upon accompanying her, something that she wouldn't deny him for it gave her pleasure as well. The small smile on his face allowed her to think that he was enjoying this time between just the two of them. Her mind, however, understood that it wasn't like what she thought.

 _I love him… but he loves_ _ **her**_ _…_

It wasn't unknown to Lemrina that the boy she liked had a crush on her half-sister, something that infuriated her to no end. Life just seemed to be so cruel to her…

 _Everything I have ever wanted has already been taken by her, even him…_

It was unknown to her, however, whether her sister loved Slaine back, although that small fact didn't matter to her. His heart was still being held captive, being corrupted, by his affection for **her**. She knew that he wasn't looking at her as if she was herself, that he was most likely envisioning the person who he actually loved.

 _The person who I've masqueraded as…_

It didn't help her emotions any that she had to pretend to be someone she wasn't. Instead of being Vers precious Princess, couldn't she just be herself? Would that ever be enough? She knew that if she didn't have her power of Aldnoah that she wouldn't be here, but she still hated it. It was the one thing that linked her even more to her half-sister.

 _I can take her appearance and make it mine, but it won't ever truly be me._

She stopped, turning around while the smile was still on her face to look at Slaine. He stopped in brief surprise, landing closely on the ground near her. She let out a laugh, no matter how much she only half felt like it, as she took the few steps closer to him. He started a bit, but didn't back down, most likely knowing that it would make her upset.

 _He still thinks about my feelings…_

"What do you think Slaine?" She asked, watching as confusion settled on his face at her question, causing her a bit of delight.

"Princess?"

He didn't need to elaborate on his question; she already knew what he was asking. She let out another laugh as she twirled around, the edges of her dress turning an elegant white as she did so. She turned to face him; her pink hair now turned into a bright blonde.

"Do you like this appearance better?"

She watched as he froze up, staring at her appearance, at her façade. She felt herself wilt inside at his reaction. Of course he still loved **her** , and everything she did reminded him of that fact.

 _He's never going to love me for being me…_

She felt tears beginning to brim in her eyes so she instinctively began to turn back around, getting ready to release the illusion. Warm hands on hers stopped her, causing her to glance back up at him in confusion, tears brimming in her eyes. Despite them, she could still see his neatly-kept blonde hair and emerald green eyes staring back at her, an unknown emotion shining in his eyes.

"You don't need to do that. Just be yourself, that's all I ask."

She was startled when he pulled her closer as tears streaked down her face, his arms enveloping her. She relaxed after a moment, feeling the wetness continue to streak down her face and onto his uniform, enjoying the moment.

 _Could he…?_

"Princess Lemrina." The voice that belonged to neither of the two of them startled her out of her thoughts, causing her to turn around and glance behind her. Brown hair and a stern face entered her vision, a stark difference between the way Slaine had just been looking at her. "I apologize for the interruption."

 _No you don't._

She felt Slaine release her, making her suddenly feel very cold and alone. She heard him take a step away from her, making her wince inwardly.

"It's fine." _But it's really not…_

Count Saazbaum stared at the two for a moment, and she felt her face heat up a bit, before he turned towards a panel on the wall.

"You should rest up Princess. The schedule for tomorrow is full and you must be at your full strength." With that, he pushed a button on the panel, causing confusion to enter her.

 _Now why would he…?_

A moment later, she felt the anti-gravity in the room turn off, causing her to feel her legs begin to collapse underneath her. She tried to reach towards the strength that she had had while the gravity had been turned off but came up with none of it. She feared the she was going to collapse as she began to fall backwards, closing her eyes for the inevitable, but felt herself fall onto something. She opened her eyes in confusion, glancing behind her to see that the person she had fallen against was Slaine. His eyes held anger towards the retreating form of Count Saazbaum, before glancing down at her in concern.

"Are you alright Princess?" She nodded, feeling her face heat up, causing her to glance away from him. Even though she had been this close to him a moment ago, this somehow felt different…

 _It's because he did this to protect me…_

Her gaze landed on her wheelchair through the glass, the device sitting outside the door that led back to the hallway. A frown made its way onto her face as she thought about her confinement once again.

 _How am I supposed to get over there now?_

"Um… Princess?" She glanced back at him, seeing how his face was just barely tinted with a blush as he too glanced at the wheelchair outside the room. "If you wouldn't mind, it might be quicker if I carried you over there…"

She felt her heart skip a beat at his suggestion, forgetting to answer as his eyes met hers. The blush increased on his face, as one began to form on her own as well, and he began to reposition her gently.

"That is, it would inconvenience you if I left you here unattended to go and get it so if you wouldn't mind…?"

This time, she was able to find her voice, nodding once before glancing away from his gaze.

"If you must…" She hoped she didn't sound disappointed. It wasn't like this opportunity happened all the time…

 _If only he knew how happy I was…_

He moved her so that one hand was positioned on her back and the other under her legs before lifting her up away from the ground. She let out a little squeal in surprise, causing her to bury her head between his shoulders in embarrassment as he let out a small laugh.

"You're safe. I promise I won't drop you."

She peeked back out at him, feeling the blush on her face grow at how close she was to him. She could feel his warmth chasing away the loneliness. She felt like she couldn't reply, her voice failing her and she laid her head back on his shoulder, taking comfort in it. This was a completely different feeling of weightlessness than floating.

 _It's nice, comforting even…_

As he carried her back, she failed to notice that she had released the illusion the moment that the Count had interrupted them.

* * *

She glanced in the mirror later that night, unable to sleep. Eddelrittuo had long since gone to bed in the other room, the older girl dismissing her shortly after they had made it back to her room. The blush was still prominent on her face and she played with her hair a bit. She wished that it would lay flat like her sister's…

 _Or maybe even curly…_

She knew that it was possible using devices that the Terrans had invented a while ago, or she could even just change her appearance again.

" _Just be yourself, that's all I ask."_ Slaine's words came back to her, making the blush deepen as she hid her face in her hands.

 _Just be myself…_ She glanced back at her reflection as she changed into the illusion of her sister for a moment, releasing it a second later. _But I have to be her…_

Her mind suddenly made itself up as a picture of the blonde Terran boy made its way into her head. She would still become this person to help him, to give him time to heal. Eventually though, she hoped that he would see her for what she really was and not just as the shadow of the person he had loved.

 _Even if just for now, for moments like today, I'll become her, for him._

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 **So my first time doing a Lemrina POV, which was surprisingly quite easy for me. I feel like even though she only appeared in Season 2 (2** **nd** **Cour) that she still deserves more love on this archive. Despite the fact that she was so antagonistic towards Asseylum, she still makes for a great cast character. Hopefully you all enjoyed this even though it's a different pairing from what I normally write! Please let me know what you all thought!**

 **-AnimeWolfGirl16**


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